Heretofore, the state-of-the-art artificial hearts have comprised rigid pumping chambers dissected by diaphragms such that a blood chamber and air chamber are defined. To accomplish the pumping operation, compressed air is vented into the air chamber causing the diaphragm to expand into the blood chamber forcing the blood out of the chamber. However, the turbulence generated by this pumping action and the compressing of the blood against the rigid surfaces of the pumping chamber damages the blood cells, often resulting in blood clotting. Moreover, such hearts are dependent upon exterior compressors to supply compressed air and, thus, are not self contained. Electrical drive means have been utilized in some artificial hearts, but such artificial hearts have still utilized either an expanding diaphragm to displace blood from a rigid chamber or a blood bladder which is compressed by a rigid member to displace the blood from the bladder. Of course, given the use of the rigid structure and the need for powerful drive means to accomplish the displacement of blood, not only is there damage to the blood cells, but the hearts tend to be heavy and large in size. Certain prior art artificial hearts are disclosed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,058,855, issued on Nov. 22, 1977; 4,173,796, issued on Nov. 13, 1979; and 4,576,606, issued on Mar. 18, 1986.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved artificial heart for replacing a natural heart.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved artificial heart which minimizes damage to blood cells during the pumping operation.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improved artificial heart which comprises a fully implantable, self-contained unit which can operate for extended periods without the necessity of an external power source.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an artificial heart which simulates the pumping action of the natural heart, reproducing the diastolic and systolic pressures of natural heart function.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an artificial heart which is light weight and small in size.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an artificial heart which is inexpensive to manufacture and maintain.